Google Voice Continues Free US-Canada VoIP Calling Through 2012

Google will continue to offer free US and Canada calls through its Google Voice service through 2012, according to a message that appears when a new user signs up for the service.

This announcement to new Google Voice users confirms the company plans to continue free US-Canada calls through next year.

Google had promised to offer US-based user free calls through the end of 2011. The company usually announces its free offers using one of a number of its blogs, and in this case no such announcement has been made. But the new service message, first publicly disclosed via a user post on the slickdeals.net bargain-shopping site, appears to confirm that the popular free calling plan will continue at least another year.

US-based Google Voice users can place the free calls through a number the company’s web pages, including directly from a users Gmail page.

But many VoIP users have been taking advantage of Obihai Technology OBi110 and OBi100 analog telephone adaptors, which easily allow the use of Google Voice over a regular handset. In fact, it is the OBi’s popularity among the thousands of slickdeal.net users that likely led to the site breaking the news even before Google did.

While free calls is attracting many users to Google Voice, the service is not a full replacement to feature packed phone calling offerings from established VoIP companies, such as VoicePulse, which rely on the SIP protocol. Google voice quality, delivered using the less common XMPP protocol, while acceptable to many users, is often not on par. In addition, Google Voice does not offer E911 emergency services calling, which is offered by VoicePulse and other low-cost internet calling companies.

I think this is really awesome. I expected to have to pay for it but I guess it’s still in betavailability mode. It’s really a great service because you can block telephone solicitors simply by using a report spam feature. I use google talk many ways, but one way is that you can access it via an asterisk PBX in the cloud which is pretty awesome… then use Sipdroid to register your android… or adoresip for iphone if they havent locked that down or something. when they lock SIP down you can put it on a different port and run different apps and things. I think developers are going to start using REST for VoIP if a firewallwar starts. I expect to see a lot of really amazing things from Google in 2012.

PCPhoneSoft

“GVJack App” Converts MJ Dongles To Google Voice

Starting this time next month (mid February 2012), you will be able to fully “re-purpose” any new, used or expired regular MJ dongle and switch to Google Voice’s free calling services using the new downloadable “GVJack App” from PCPhoneSoft.com.

The “GVJack App” is designed to provide a featured landline calling experience. When placing calls while your computer is also in use, everything is processed quietly in the background without the use of popups and display screens so you can focus on your work.

To place a call, pick up the handset and use your phone’s keypad to dial the number. When somebody calls your Google Voice number just answer your phone when it rings. You will also be able to use the same phone for online voice and video chats via Skype, Yahoo and Facebook.

Popular features including 7 digit local area dialing, caller id name and number delivery, call waiting and voice mail waiting indicators are currently undergoing rigorous testing in the lab and are working well. In addition, Google Voice has its own built in features for screening incoming calls.

Computer assisted calling is also supported. When you are surfing online, you will also be able to click on any phone number found on a given webpage to place a call. The “GVJack APP” is also designed to let you instantaneously access your online Google Voice account to send and receive SMS text messages.

While more expensive standalone solutions have their own merits, the additional redundancy that Google Voice offers make it an ideal fit for lower cost USB based hardware solutions. For example, Google Voice provides the flexibility to simultaneously ring your mobile phone when somebody calls. This redundancy means that you can continue to receive calls on your mobile phone even when your computer is powered off.

You will be able to download the “GVJack App” and try the full version with your regular MJ dongle for up to 7 days to see if it meets your needs prior to purchase. The one time software purchase will be significantly less than the price of a standard 1 year MJ service subscription.